Silica-based glass, such as soda-lime-silica glass, is prevalent in the manufacture of glass containers and other articles. Molten glass used to make such articles is conventionally prepared by introducing a loose mixture of individual solid glass-forming materials known as a “glass batch” into a glass furnace or tank and melting the glass batch at elevated temperature to form a substantially homogenous glass melt.
A general object of the present disclosure, in accordance with one aspect of the disclosure, is to provide a structured pellet of glass batch material that can be melted at a lower temperature and in less time than a conventional loose mixture of glass-forming materials, and thus can improve the energy efficiency of the glass manufacturing process.
The present disclosure embodies a number of aspects that can be implemented separately from or in combination with each other.
A structured pellet of glass batch material for producing glass in accordance with one aspect of the disclosure includes: a core and a shell surrounding the core. The core includes a mixture of glass-forming materials and the shell includes a thermally-activated material. The thermally-activated material is formulated to undergo an exothermic chemical reaction when heated to a temperature at or above a threshold temperature such that heat is transferred from the shell to the mixture of glass-forming materials in the core.
In accordance with another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a process for making glass. A structured pellet of glass batch materials is provided that includes a core and a shell surrounding the core. The core includes a mixture of glass-forming materials and the shell includes a thermally-activated material. The shell is heated to a temperature at or above a threshold temperature to initiate an exothermic chemical reaction that supplies heat to the mixture of glass-forming materials in the core. The core is heated at a sufficient temperature and for a sufficient amount of time to melt the mixture of glass-forming materials in the core and form a body of molten glass.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a process for producing a structured pellet glass of glass batch materials. The process includes: providing a particulate mixture of glass-forming materials; mixing the glass-forming materials with a binder to form a plurality of agglomerated bodies; and coating the agglomerated bodies with an overlying layer of a coating material that includes a thermally-activated material. The thermally-activated material is formulated to undergo an exothermic chemical reaction when heated to a temperature at or above a threshold temperature.